Trending Faith: Are Ghosts Real?
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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Grand Canyon University. Any sources cited were accurate as of the publish date.
08/29/2025
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College of Theology Dean Jason Hiles, PhD, sat down with University Pastor and Dean of Students Tim Griffin to discuss this offbeat topic.
Dr. Hiles and Pastor Tim agree that “ghosts” – humans who have passed away but whose “spirits” are “with” us on Earth – are a foreign concept from a biblical perspective. But Dr. Hiles also discussed the Witch of Endor from the Old Testament which involved resurrecting the spirit of Samuel.
Otherwise, however, there isn’t much evidence suggesting the presence of “ghosts” beyond angelic or demonic spirits.
Pastor Tim notes our society’s fascination with zombies and vampires in today’s culture, but that the biblical references of spiritual beings almost exclusively denote angels or demons. He also notes that Scripture suggests we entertain angels “unaware” or having interactions with spiritual beings through God.
“I don’t know if there’s much biblical support for the idea of ghosts,” Griffin said. “I think at the very least that the scriptures are pretty clear that most kinds of spiritual beings that we interact with us are not like us and angelic in nature.”
Hear more about ghosts, spirits, and demons by checking out this week’s Trending Faith video.
If you would like the chance to hear your questions answered, email them to trendingfaith@gcu.edu or use #TrendingFaith.
